Doubling chromosomes results in bigger plants
Using the tools of genetics and a longtime love of gardening, she aims to produce landscape plants that might use fewer nutrients and water or make more essential oils – all in less time than normal. That holds out possibilities for home gardeners and for growers supplying that market.
She’s relying on a trick practised by many plants called polyploidy. Unlike most animals, plants can still be coaxed to double their number of chromosomes – or even triple or quadruple them.
Biologists piggyback on a natural process in tinkering with chromosome numbers. Moeller says scientists think plants have undergone chromosome doubling many times during their evolution, using certain genes needed for survival and silencing or getting rid of others.
Click here to read more about the study of Emily Moeller at atguelph.uoguelph.ca